People have talked about the markets in the developed world nearing saturation point and how challenging it has become for businesses to grow market share and achieve high top-line and bottom-line growth. The financial services industry has been no exception to this. Banks in the developed world face increasing challenges in sustaining growth in their domestic markets.
Having conquered niche areas such as new college graduates and baby boomer retirees, banks have turned to segments that some call the “final frontiers” – segments that are most difficult to penetrate because the return on investment is neither very obvious nor easy to achieve. These include large sections of the rural population in developing countries and some demographic groups in developed countries – lower-income and new immigrant groups.